Smithsonite (1781) - image 1
Smithsonite (1781) - image 2
specimen video

Smithsonite (1781)

Unknown Owner
A superb sharp large lustrous crystal of smithsonite with a few small side crystals. This is in super condition. At one time the specimen was part of the famous smithsonite suite owned by Dawn and James Minette and comes with their data card. Before them, the specimen was owned by California collector Dave Eidahl. This is an outstanding large crystal for the species. This specimen was on public display at the 2026 Tucson Gem and Mineral show.The Tsumeb Mine in northern Namibia was one of the worlds most famous polymetallic mines, known for producing copper, lead, and zinc from a large pipe like orebody hosted in dolomite. Mining began in the late 19th century and expanded through the 20th century with extensive underground workings and a major smelter that supported the local economy. The deposit became internationally renowned for its extraordinary mineral diversity, with hundreds of mineral species identified from the mine. Although primary mining ended in the 1990s, Tsumeb remains one of the most celebrated mineral localities in the world for both scientific study and mineral collecting.

Product details

Species
SmithsoniteAbout Smithsonite →
SizeMiniature
Dimensions3.7 x 2.0 x 1.8 cm
Added on03/21/2026
Locality
Namibia, Oshikoto Region, TsumebRegional guide →

Known provenance

DateCollectorAcquisition price
05/2026Unknown Owner$3,250.00
—Weinrich MineralsNot disclosed

Learn more

Smithsonite
Mineral guide
Learn about Smithsonite
ZnCO3 with botryoidal and crystalline forms, silky to vitreous luster, pastel hues from cobalt to yellow; localities boost collecting appeal.
Smithsonite
Regional guide
Smithsonite from Tsumeb, Namibia
is one of the defining collector minerals of Tsumeb: not merely because it is common there, but because Tsumeb turns a usually massive or botryoidal zinc carbonate into a locality signature mineral with uncommon crystal variety, depth of color, and association. Tsumeb smithsonite spans the familiar apple-greens and blue-greens of copper-bearing material, soft pink to violet-pink cobaltoan and manganoan-looking rhombs, yellow-brown and chocolate-brown iron-rich crystals, pale grey to white crusts, colorless to translucent rhombs, and rare red-pink material from the deeper oxidized workings. The best specimens combine sharp rhombohedral or scalenohedral crystals with the sculptural mineralogical theater for which Tsumeb is famous: galena-rich sulfide matrix, sugary dolomite, black tennantite and pyrite ore, cerussite, mimetite, malachite, wulfenite, duftite, dioptase, and willemite.